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Category Archives: GDPR

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The European Health Data Space — Panacea or Poison Pill?

The proposal provides a uniform basis for secondary research and clarifies uncertainty over implementation and interpretation of the GDPR but also raises many questions. By Oliver Mobasser and Gail Crawford On 3 May 2022, the European Commission launched its proposal for a Regulation for the European Health Data Space to “unleash the full potential of … Continue Reading

Advocate General: No Compensation for Mere Upset Caused by GDPR Infringement

The Advocate General opined that data subjects must prove that they suffered damage from a GDPR breach in order to claim compensation. By Tim Wybitul, Isabelle Brams, Lara Nonninger, and Hayley Pizzey Article 82 of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) states that any person who has suffered material or non-material damage as a result … Continue Reading

UK Data Protection Bill: Overview of Proposed Changes (Part 1)

The bill would largely build on the UK data protection regime’s EU GDPR-style framework, albeit with UK-specific provisions. By James Lloyd, Fiona M. Maclean, Calum Docherty, Irina Vasile, Alex Ford-Cox, and Amy Smyth The UK government introduced the Data Protection and Digital Information Bill (the Bill) to Parliament on 18 July 2022, following the publication … Continue Reading

UK Data Protection Bill: Examination of Key Provisions (Part 2)

Areas of interest include anonymisation, “recognised legitimate interests”, and the ICO’s role. By James Lloyd, Fiona M. Maclean, Calum Docherty, Irina Vasile, Alex Ford-Cox, and Amy Smyth The UK Data Protection and Digital Information Bill (the Bill) sets out the government’s proposals for reforming the current UK data protection regime (consisting primarily of the UK … Continue Reading

CJEU AG Sets High Bar for Responses to Data Subject Access Requests

The Advocate General argues that organisations should provide individuals with information on the specific recipients of their personal data. By Tim Wybitul, James Lloyd, Isabelle Brams, Irina Vasile, and Amy Smyth Advocate General Giovanni Pitruzzella (AG) of the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) recently delivered an opinion (the Opinion) regarding the interpretation … Continue Reading

EDPB Emphasizes “Dissuasive” Fines in New Draft Guidelines on GDPR Fine Calculation

The EDPB sets out relevant steps and factors that EU supervisory authorities should consider when calculating administrative fines under the GDPR. By Gail Crawford, Ian Felstead, James Lloyd, Tim Wybitul, Irina Vasile, Sami Qureshi, and Amy Smyth On 16 May 2022, the European Data Protection Board (EDPB) adopted draft Guidelines 04/2022 on the calculation of … Continue Reading

Austrian Court Submits Questions on GDPR Civil Damages Claims to CJEU

The CJEU’s decision is likely to have significant implications for ongoing and future proceedings for damages claims under Art. 82 GDPR. By Tim Wybitul, Christoph Baus, Stefan Patzer, and Isabelle Brams On April 15, 2021, the Austrian Supreme Court (OGH) referred key questions regarding non-material damages for data protection infringements under Art. 82 GDPR to … Continue Reading

Privacy Group Launches Cookie Complaints Campaign Against EU Website Operators Based on Its Interpretation of Cookie Rules

The privacy organisation noyb will file more than 10,000 complaints for use of cookies contrary to its interpretation of compliance. By Gail Crawford, Myria Saarinen, Tim Wybitul, Wolf Boehm, Charlotte Guerin, and Amy Smyth On 31 May 2021, the nonprofit privacy organisation noyb (short for “none of your business”) launched a large-scale campaign to combat … Continue Reading

German Court: CJEU Must Clarify Whether GDPR Provides Materiality Threshold

The decision means the CJEU will need to clarify the framework for GDPR damages claims. By Tim Wybitul, Dr. Christoph Baus, and Dr. Isabelle Brams The German Federal Constitutional Court has ruled that the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) needs to clarify if the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) provides for a … Continue Reading

French Data Protection Authority Hands Down First Sanction as Lead Authority

The CNIL has imposed a €250,000 fine on an online retailer for GDPR infringements in cooperation with other EU supervisory authorities. By Myria Saarinen and Charlotte Guerin Founded in 2006 and headquartered in France, Spartoo SAS (Spartoo) is one of the leaders of the European online shoe retail market. On 31 May 2018, a week … Continue Reading

French State Council Upholds CNIL’s €50M Fine for GDPR Violations

The Council decision contains useful considerations and clarifications on the “one-stop shop” mechanism, transparency obligations, and consent for targeted advertising. By Myria Saarinen and Camille Dorval On 19 June 2020, France’s Highest Administrative Court (Council) handed down its decision on the appeal filed by Google LLC (Google) against the French Data Protection Authority’s (CNIL’s) decision … Continue Reading

EDPB Guidelines – What is the Territorial Reach of the GDPR?

After the recent two-year anniversary of the GDPR, one fundamental question remains — who does the GDPR apply to? By Gail Crawford, Ulrich Wuermeling, and Calum Docherty Last month marked the two-year anniversary of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), but its territorial reach is still hotly debated. This blog post takes a detailed look … Continue Reading

UK MRC Clarifies When Health Data Is Anonymised in Research Context

Research participants must identify which data sets constitute personal data to ensure compliance with the GDPR. By Frances Stocks Allen and Mihail Krepchev The UK Medical Research Council (MRC) has published a useful guidance note on the identifiability, anonymisation, and pseudonymisation of personal data in the context of research activities (the Guidance). The Guidance reminds … Continue Reading

Data Protection Impacts for UK Businesses Under the UK Withdrawal Agreement

“Business as usual” for UK-EU data protection transition in 2020.   By Gail E. Crawford and Susan Mann On 29 January 2020, the EU Parliament approved the UK Withdrawal Agreement after the UK Parliament’s ratification via the EU Withdrawal Act 2020 on 23 January 2020 (Withdrawal Agreement). The Withdrawal Agreement maintains the UK pre-Brexit position … Continue Reading

Updates: UK ICO Statements on Adtech and Real Time Bidding

Despite progress, the online advertising industry and UK regulators are still at odds over the “legitimate interest” definition under the GDPR. By Olga Phillips and Elizabeth Purcell Following publication of the UK Information Commissioner’s Office’s (ICO’s) report on adtech and real time bidding in June 2019, the ICO has been working closely with the online … Continue Reading

China Issues New Cybersecurity Law to Protect Children

China’s PCPPIC protects children’s personal information in much the same way as COPPA and the GDPR, but with a few differences. By Wei-Chun (Lex) Kuo, Weina (Grace) Gao, and Cheng-Ling Chen On August 22, 2019, the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) released a new data privacy regulation related to children, the Provisions on Cyber Protection … Continue Reading

How Are European Supervisory Authorities Exercising Cooperation and Consistency In Practice?

Recent action by the Hamburg authority may present implications for companies regulated by a lead data protection supervisory authority in Europe. By Fiona Maclean, Tim Wybitul, Joachim Grittmann, Wolf Böhm, Isabelle Brams, and Amy Smyth A German supervisory authority has initiated an investigation into Google’s speech recognition practices and language assistant technologies, which are integrated … Continue Reading

High GDPR Fines: German Data Protection Authority Joins the Club

Following in the footsteps of the CNIL and the ICO, the Berlin DPA will impose a multimillion-euro fine for breach of the GDPR. By Tim Wybitul, Joachim Grittmann, Ulrich Wuermeling, Wolf-Tassilo Böhm, and Isabelle Brams The Berlin Data Protection Authority (Berlin DPA) recently announced that it will issue a multimillion-euro fine for breach of the … Continue Reading

Navigating Data Processing Ethics for FinTech in Hong Kong

If adopted efficiently, the PCPD’s Ethical Accountability Framework should help organizations to demonstrate and enhance trust with individuals. By Kieran Donovan In October, 2018, Hong Kong’s Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data (PCPD) presented the findings of an inquiry into the ethics of data processing, commissioned by the PCPD with the help of the Information Accountability … Continue Reading

France’s CNIL Publishes New Guidance on Cookies

The guidance provides general requirements for obtaining valid consent and details conditions under which audience management cookies may be exempt. By Myria Saarinen and Camille Dorval On 4 July 2019, one day after the UK Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) published new guidance on cookies, the French Data Protection Authority (CNIL) released its own new guidance … Continue Reading

UK Government Launches ‘Smart Data’ Proposals as Data-Portability Agenda Intensifies

The proposals would grant consumers increasing rights to require providers to share access to their data directly with chosen third parties. By Alain Traill and Gail Crawford The UK government has released a consultation advocating the introduction of sweeping new requirements for service providers to share both consumer data (upon request) and data regarding their own … Continue Reading

UK’s ICO Publishes New Guidance on Cookies

The guidance clarifies the interplay between the PECR and GDPR and provides practical steps to achieving cookie compliance. By Fiona M. Maclean, Laura Holden, and Grace E. Erskine The UK’s data protection supervisory authority, the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), published guidance on 3 July 2019 to provide greater clarity to organisations grappling with how the … Continue Reading

UK Regulator Imposes Two Substantial Fines for GDPR Data Breaches

The ICO issued notices of intent to fine British Airways and Marriott. What happened? By Gail Crawford, Fiona Maclean, Hayley Pizzey, and Calum Docherty On 8 July 2019, the UK Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) announced a notice of intent to fine British Airways £183.39 million (about US$230 million) for violating the General Data Protection Regulation … Continue Reading

ICO Launches Consultation on Age-Appropriate Design: A Code of Practice for ISS

Online services have until 31 May to respond to 16 draft standards of age-appropriate design. By Fiona Maclean and Olga M. Phillips The ICO is required by s123 of the Data Protection Act 2018 to prepare a code of practice which contains guidance on standards of age-appropriate design of relevant information society services likely to … Continue Reading
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